Tag Archives: Sam Gagner

Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors

Are the Oilers About to Make a Trade?

I find it quite interesting that the Edmonton Oilers have sat Jujhar Khaira for an entire week while playing Sam Gagner and Patrick Russell instead. My impression of his importance to the team was that he was an integral part of their penalty-killing unit but it seems that’s not the case. I mean, if you’ve been watching the games you might find that he’s looked disengaged for the most part, save for five days in November. For Oilers fans, I believe we’ve conditioned ourselves to Khaira’s career of peaks and valleys in hopes that he might actually break out of it and choose one or another ignoring the fact that maybe he’s not what we’ve hoped he is or could be.

He’s 196 games into his career and I’m not seeing any signs that he’ll be anything more than a 4th line player. In 42 appearances this year he has six goals and two assists and is -35… He’s 25-years-old and the kids on the farm are passing him by.

Don’t get me wrong. I really like Jujhar. He is smart, plays an honest brand of hockey, he hits, fights, he’s got some slick hands and a really good shot when he uses it. He plays the game the right way and he sticks up for his teammates. If the Oilers decided to keep him around, that would make sense to me. Heavy players are valued come playoff time and I know he has suitors across the league who’d claim him in an instant if he hit the waiver wire and the Oilers don’t have anybody like him in their system under an NHL contract who could come in and replace him seamlessly.

So, since we’re coming up on the Oilers bye week, I figured I’d get in touch with some of my sources to see what’s going on and the consensus is that Edmonton IS sitting on a trade right now and the belief is that it’ll be one of Jujhar Khaira or Sam Gagner getting moved after the all-star break which is next weekend.

My feeling is that Ken Holland will be trying to open up some contract space with these deals. That could mean dollars (reducing their cap hit) or the number of contracts under the 50-man limit.

We know that Edmonton could move Khaira tomorrow for a small/skilled bottom-six forward tomorrow because we’ve been told so. As for Gagner, he’s making too much money to be a part-time player for the Oilers.

There has to be the Tyler Benson consideration as well. He’s lighting up the AHL again this year and he’ll be called up after the bye-week/all-star break. Therefore, there must be a roster spot available for him in order to do so.

Could all of this coincide with the Oilers re-signing Caleb Jones to a new two-year deal yesterday? It might. Think about it. It’s out there that the Anaheim Ducks will take on salary if the team sending the contract to them will also include a prospect. If the Oilers are looking to move Gagner, wouldn’t it make sense to throw in a guy like William Lagesson if they’re not intending to use the player? Especially with the impending return of Matthew Benning?

Another player I’m convinced will move is left-shot defender Kris Russell but it could cost the Oilers a bit more since he’s still got another year after this one remaining on his contract at $4M per season. I don’t know if they’ll be able to move the cap hit, to be frank. It all really depends on what can be done with Gagner and/or Khaira, in my opinion? If those players can be traded for picks or prospects or a player with a lower cap-hit, that could make things more flexible for a Russell trade. Meaning, one option is that they could take on a player with a higher cap-hit but shorter contract in exchange for the Caroline Cowboy.

Personally, I don’t feel that the club would feel the absence of Khaira or Gagner as much as they might Russell in the playoffs. Say what you will about the Southern Alberta Starfish, but he brings it and puts it all on the line for his team and in the post-season, he brings massive value that way and the gentlemen in the Oilers locker room think very highly of that skill.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments below!

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Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL

Edmonton Oilers Rumors: The Trades that Didn’t Happen

Going into this year’s trade deadline, I was almost giddy. I was looking forward to seeing some mad roster turnover for the Edmonton Oilers given the number of depth players that they had on their team. These are the sort of players that contenders usually pick up for their playoff run, or so I thought…

But before we get into that, I think we should take the time to acknowledge the handy work of former GM Peter Chiarelli.

I don’t care what you say. The Oilers junior pipeline and minor league system was completely rebuilt thanks to Chiarelli and the Oilers are going to reap what he sowed going forward. At least, he got one thing majorly right…

Back to the trade deadline analysis.

What did I wake up to? Not a single trade from Bob Nicholson’s management crew.

Now, I didn’t think that they’d be pilfering off young assets and draft picks but I did expect them to move one of their defensemen, at least. Or one of Zack Kassian or Alex Chiasson… But nadda…

They did well earlier with the Cam Talbot and Sam Gagner trades, no arguing that. Getting that cap room open and bringing in a character guy with skill has proven to be some astute interim-GMing on Gretzky’s part, but I view this year’s deadline as a fail on Keith Gretzky, Craig MacTavish, Scott Howson, and Bob Nicholson.

When I got in touch with one of my sources to see how things were going earlier in the day, I was told that things weren’t looking rosy. That the team would most likely stand pat because they believed they could still make the playoffs.

I says, “WHAT?!”

Right now the Oilers have a 6% chance of making the post-season. Tell me how a group of grown men who’ve worked in professional hockey for most of, if not all, their adult lives can, with a straight face, believe the Oilers have a chance at making the playoffs?

I like to think that I’m one of the most optimistic Oilers fans out there and I try my best to find the positive in everything but this is a bit ridiculous.

The Oilers should’ve tried to gather as many picks and prospects as possible in the last 48 hours. They’ve got eight defensemen on the NHL roster right now… I get that they needed to have warm bodies for the game vs. NSH yesterday but they were a lot closer to Bakersfield then that they were three days ago.

The same source that told me that the team was most likely to stay quiet also intimated that the reason they weren’t really going for it to upgrade the team or, for lack of a better team, tank, was because Darryl Katz is set to lose a sack of money labeled “millions” from non-renewals on his suites.

Well la-di-frickin’-da… That’s simply called a “stupidity tax”.

Do that enough times and you’ll find yourself living in a van down by the river eating government cheese!

RIP: Chris Farley

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ON THE OTHER HAND

Sometimes you’ve just got to get some things off of your chest before you can understand something through a clear(er) lens.

One thing that no other NHL team has right now is Connor McDavid, and you cannot discount the Oilers chances of going on a massive run when he’s playing. The team has performed fantastically during his suspension and if they can combine that with the kind of goaltending that Mikko Koskinen is giving and a healthy defense, you never know…

With a game in hand, the Oilers are only 7 points from a wildcard spot. They’re next five games are against Toronto, Ottawa, Columbus, Buffalo, and Vancouver. I won’t even speculate as to what they might come out of those games with point-wise as it could go either way against all of those teams.

The Oilers have been playing some of their best hockey since coming back from the bye week (3-5-4). There’s an intensity and a work ethic in their game that had been missing for some time and I think that it’s tied into Hitch being told to take it easy on the players.

They are 2-2-2 since Nick Kypreos made it public during Hockey Night in Canada’s Saturday Headlines that the Oilers would like him to be a bit more “positive” if he’s to remain behind the bench.

SPEAKING OF POSITIVE

Bob Stauffer said on Oilers Now yesterday that a couple of weeks ago, the Oilers had inquired into the services of Matt Hendricks for the reason of bringing some more positivity to the room. Obviously, we know that didn’t happen, he was traded back to Winnipeg from Minnesota on the deadline for a late round draft pick, a 7th rounder if I’m not mistaken…

I would’ve been jumping for joy had they brought Hendy back. He’s one of my favorite all-time Oilers. Such a hard worker and what a positive influence he was on that team when he was there. Plus, he definitely would’ve scored in the shootout vs. NSH last night instead of Rattie getting stopped.

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OTHER RUMORED TRADES

Mark Spector said that a Kassian to Toronto for Connor Brown deal never went through. I’d heard a Matt Benning for Brown trade was on the table and I think that Stauffer was saying the Maple Leafs wanted Jujhar Khaira because he was making a bit less. Probably the same reason that Edmonton wanted to keep him.

I’d heard bits and pieces about teams inquiring about Adam Larsson but nothing concrete. Milan Lucic was a hot topic for a short time. I think the Oilers were trying to get the Habs or the Panthers to take him on.

Lots of talk about Milan and Jesse Puljujarvi getting moved to Ottawa this summer and that makes sense but some might be asking whether Lucic would bother to waive his NMC to go there? I say he will because there’ll be a deal to retain salary and move him on again because the Senators will need to hit the cap floor.

Lastly, I got a DM saying that Boston was interested in one of the Oilers top-4 defenders but no other details. Sorry.

So take all of that for what you will.

In conclusion, the Oilers didn’t get worse on deadline day but on the other hand, they didn’t do anything to improve either.

So we’ll wait until the summer and see what the new GM has in store. You just hope it’s not another year of auditing before taking action.

What did you think of this year’s trade deadline for the Oilers? Let me know in the comments below!

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Armchair GM, Edmonton Oil Drops, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors, Trades

Edmonton Oil Drops: Oilers 2019 NHL Trade Deadline Preview

Keith Gretzky basically laughed at the idea of the Oilers being in on any of the big-name rental players, as he should have. The Oilers are currently 8 points back of a playoff spot with 5 teams to hurdle in order to get into the final wild-card position.

The Oilers have already made two trades prior to this deadline. They traded Cam Talbot for a younger and cheaper backup named Anthony Stolarz. They also unloaded failed experiment Ryan Spooner on to Vancouver for Edmonton’s new favorite former Oiler, Sam Gagner. Stolarz has yet to make his Oilers debut, but Gagner has 2 goals in his 4 games in an Oilers uniform since being acquired, including the game-winner against the Ducks last night.

The team has gone 2-1-1 since making those trades after the loss in Carolina. Gagner represents a clear upgrade in the forward group, and the return of Andrej Sekera has been helpful. Coach Hitchcock has said that they have played well in all but one of their games since the bye week ended. They certainly haven’t been rewarded in kind for their efforts, but the team is playing better than it had been prior to the break.

What might they do on deadline day? Will Milan Lucic get moved? Is Jesse Puljujarvi going to get traded? Will Alex Chiasson and Zack Kassian remain Oilers? Click here to find out

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Armchair GM, Beer League Hero, Edmonton Oilers, NHL, Rumors, Trades

Edmonton Oilers Rumors: Gagner, Sekera In. Talbot, Puljujarvi Out. Who’s Next?

What. A. Weekend! I was convinced that the Oilers were going to really make a go of it against Pittsburgh, Carolina, and the Islanders but man did they show me how wrong I really was. So much for getting rewarded for hard work eh? Those boys must be absolutely spent mentally. It’s come to the point to where they can’t even get a win when they do the right things…

Well, no need to dwell on that. The Oilers have started the sell-off with a couple of deals. One that I expected very much and the other that I’d heard rumblings of but didn’t actually think it would go down.

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Cam Talbot Gets His Trade

We talked about this WAY back in November, eh?

The recent rumor was that Brian Elliott was going to be the goalie coming back from Philadelphia, but it turned out that the management team lead by Keith Gretzky found a way to get 25-year-old Anthony Stolarz instead and cleared up almost $3.5M in cap space in the process.

Has anybody found out how Chuck Fletcher is going to deal with having Brian Elliott, Michael Neuvirth, Carter Hart, and Cam Talbot on the team?

I approve of this deal because I’m tired of seeing goals being scored on Edmonton in the first few shifts of a game or a period. Not a knock on Dadbot the person because he was a great citizen in Edmonton, but he didn’t want to be there anymore, the Oilers didn’t want him anymore. He’ll be a good mentor and backup for the Flyers.

Another plus to that deal was that Edmonton didn’t have to retain any salary. So good on them for that.

I don’t know a lot about Stolarz. When Bob Stauffer asked Gretzky for the scouting report on this kid, all he could say was that he was big and athletic… Alrighty then. Well, hopefully, the Oilers goalie coach doesn’t get him to leave the top corners open as he has with Koskinen and Talbot.

https://twitter.com/TheOilKnight/status/1096645322510557184

The Return of Samwise

I’d heard whispers of this maybe a month ago and I also remember it hypothetically being brought up on Oilers Now but I never thought it would actually go down. It was widely believed that Ryan Spooner would either be a buyout this summer or he’d be buried in the minors until his contract had expired, Mark Fayne-style.

My belief is that while Sam has still got the mind for the game and his hands are still there, his skating is not. I really think he was brought in for his leadership qualities and to gain a bit of favor with an irate fanbase. There’s nothing like bringing back a fan favorite!

It didn’t take long for him to get up to the 2nd line either eh? Jesse Puljujarvi couldn’t buy a second on the Oilers 2nd PP unit but Gagner gets thrust right into it with Colby Cave and Ty Rattie… If that doesn’t tell you how far Hitchcock’s coaching has fallen, I don’t know what does.

Were These Going to be Chiarelli’s Trades?

We were told that both of these deals were being negotiated for some time before they’d been finalized. So why all of a sudden is Keith Gretzky getting the push from the Oilers media to be the team’s next GM? All he did was say ok.

https://twitter.com/NHLbyMatty/status/1096827711262212098

I think that for the sake of the Gretzky name, Keith should take his name out of the running for the job and stay behind the scenes. Just because he’s got his name on a trade that the Oilers have won and another that is a wash doesn’t mean he’s qualified for the position. And let’s say he does get hired and nothing changes with the performances of the team. You think the fans are angry now… Just wait until they start vandalizing the Gretzky statue outside the arena.

Kretzky can be a very effective member of this team’s management structure without having to be the general manager.

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Who’s Getting Traded Next?

Let’s take a look at some of the Oilers most likely to be moved between now and the deadline. Keeping in mind here that the plan is to clear as much cap space as possible.

  • Alex Petrovic – If not waivers, it sounds like the Pens are interested in him. I don’t think the Oilers will get much back in return. Hopefully, a draft pick but if I were gunning for a prospect, I really like a kid by the name of JS Dea. He’s a small skilled center that doesn’t look like there’s a future for him in Pittsburgh at 24 years old. I think he’d fit seamlessly onto Bakersfield’s roster.
  • Matt Benning – Toronto, Pittsburgh, Montreal, Dallas, and Arizona are teams I’ve heard with interest in the rugged defender. He’s on the IR right now though. Once again, I’m sure a draft pick is the aim but if I could get a player out of these teams, I’d try for these ones,
    • TOR – Calle Rosen (D) – offensive dman who’s lighting up the AHL for the Marlies.
    • MTL – Joni Ikonen (C) – Highly skilled pivot scoring in bunches in Finland. Could be the key to unlocking Puljujarvi?
    • ARI – Nick Cousins (C) – No offensive output but he’s a dedicated 3C who can win draws. Edmonton needs players who pride themselves on their defensive acumen.
    • DAL – Julius Honka (D) – High-risk dman who can move the puck. Has worn his welcome out in Dallas though.
  • Brandon Manning – If the Oilers can find a way to get rid of Ryan Spooner, I’ve got some faith they might be able to do the same with Manning. If not, a waivers he will go!

**EDIT: To make room for Andrej Sekera, Manning was put on waivers for the purpose of assignment. Finally taking some of the power out of Hitchcock’s hands…**

  • Zack Kassian – If there’s a guy who I’d like to see stay, it’s Zack. Maybe he’s changed his mind from before and he feels the same but one has to wonder why he’s getting such a push on McDavid’s line recently if it’s not for a showcasing. I guess Boston has been asking around with regards to his availability.
    • BOS – Edmonton has been watching a lot of Bruins games in the last couple of weeks and I wouldn’t be surprised if a bigger deal was being negotiated but Don Sweeney is all-in this year and they’re younger players are up for grabs. Forwards like Danton Heinen, Anton Blidh, and Peter Cehlarik are available. I know the Oilers have liked Heinen in the past and he’s a player with some zip/speed to his game that Edmonton could certainly use and he did put up nearly 50 points last season.
  • Alex Chiasson – Gretzky said he’d like to keep him because if they traded him the Oilers wouldn’t have enough NHL forwards on the team. So he’s basically given him an NMC unofficially but I think they’ll be getting calls on him. Chiasson is exactly the kind of player teams who plan to go deep into the playoffs acquire. He’s big, he works his ass off, and he’s effective along the boards. Plus he starts off really well with new teams in terms of goal-scoring. No word on who’s interested here. I think Nashville would be though with Austin Watson out. Possibly Montreal as they could use a bit of size on the flanks.
    • NSH – Give me Tolvanen! Just kidding! I don’t see a lot on their roster that would be feasible in terms of a player-for-player trade. So a mid-round draft pick would suffice
    • MTL – Charles Hudon (F) recently went through waivers. I’d have time for him.
  • Toby Rieder – Edmonton is having trouble giving this guy away but I feel like a team who’d like a player who can contribute on the PK might come calling for him on deadline day.

I could probably do the whole roster but I’m going to stop there. Can’t see Manning getting claimed and in my opinion, Kevin Gravel has earned himself a new contract. So that means Petrovic is probably the next shoe to drop folks!

What do you think? Let us know in the comments below!

Elias Pettersson’s nickname is “Alien”. Here’s a shirt to celebrate it! Click the image to buy one!
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Eric Friesen, NHL

Ranking the Oilers Top 10 Picks of the Past 10 Drafts

Everything considered it was a great draft weekend for the Edmonton Oilers. They didn’t get a top pairing defenceman and they weren’t able to trade Nail Yakupov (I expect both will get done in the week), but GM Peter Chiarelli got his man with the 4th overall pick. Even after losing all three lottery draws in April, the Oilers left Buffalo with Jesse Puljujarvi in their prospect pool. Hopefully Puljujarvi will be Edmonton’s last high pick for a long time as they continue to push toward becoming a playoff team.

The Oilers have done very well in the first round over the past 10 years. I mean, it’s hard to mess up when you are picking near the top of the order year after year, but it’s still not a sure thing as we’ve seen with Yakupov (1st overall, 2012) and Magnus Paajarvi (10th overall, 2009).

In today’s blog, I will rank the Oilers top 10 picks of the past 10 drafts.

10. Brandon Davidson (162nd overall, 2010) – Some might say I’m going out limb here, by putting a player who has only played 63 NHL games on this list, but he’s earned it. For a team that has had few hits beyond the first round over the past decade, Davidson was a pleasant surprise for the Oilers in 2015-16, emerging as a steady top four defenceman.

9. Darnell Nurse (7th overall, 2013) – After selecting a forward with their first pick in six consecutive drafts, the Oilers finally ended that streak by taking Nurse in the first round three years ago. Nurse was asked to handle way too much responsibility in his rookie year, and to no one’s surprise he struggled. I don’t think he’s ever going to be a big point producer in the NHL, but he’s still young, and has the size, tenacity and skating ability to develop into a top pairing defender.

8. Sam Gagner (6th overall, 2007) – Gagner got off to a great start to his NHL career, tallying 49 points as a rookie in 2007-08. He never bested that total in his next six years in Edmonton and would have been better served moving from centre to the wing. Gagner was still one of the Oilers offensive leaders for several years and the highlight of his career was when he tied Wayne Gretzky and Paul Coffey‘s team record for points in a single game (8 points) back in 2012.

7. Oscar Klefbom (19th overall, 2011) – Klefbom was most likely the Oilers best defenceman over the past two seasons and at only 22-years-old, his best years are ahead of him. I had no issue with GM Peter Chiarelli signing Klefbom to a seven-year extension last September, despite having played under 100 games in the NHL at that point.

6. Jesse Puljujarvi (4th overall, 2016) – I’m making a bold pick here considering Puljujarvi hasn’t even played a game in the NHL yet. But I feel confident ranking him this high on the list and think he would even higher if I were to re-do it in five years. Puljujarvi is perhaps the most complete player in this year’s draft and will likely be in the Oilers’ lineup on October 12th when they open Rogers Place.

5. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (1st overall, 2011) – When Nugent-Hopkins was first drafted, some fans and media members speculated that he might be the best of the Oilers young guns by the time he reached his prime. That won’t happen now, but RNH has developed into a reliable two-way centre. He came into the league as a No. 1 centre, but in the past year has dropped to third on the Oilers’ depth chart down the middle.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uz6XGbGjWk

4. Leon Draisaitl (3rd overall, 2014) – After 15 years of chasing a big, skilled centre, Edmonton finally got one in the draft two years ago. Draisiatl took a big step forward in his development last season, and even though he faded down the stretch, I believe he’s going to be a big part of this team for the next 10 years.

3. Jordan Eberle (22nd overall, 2008) – Eberle was a steal for the Oilers late in the first round eight years ago. A natural goal scorer, Eberle is one of the best right-wingers in the NHL as well as the best pure finisher on the Oilers. He’s led the team in scoring in three of his six years with the team and deserves to be one of Edmonton’s top three picks of the past decade based on that alone.

2. Taylor Hall (1st overall, 2010) – An elite scoring winger, Hall is a two-time top 10 scorer in the NHL and recorded a career-high 80 points in 2013-14. Hall became the first Oiler to score at least 80 points in over a decade. Like Eberle, Hall has led the team in scoring in three of his six years with the Oilers and has learned to take his foot off the gas a bit, which resulted in him staying healthy from start to finish for the first time last season. I will never understand why 30% of the Oilers fan base wants to trade him. Because he turns over the puck too much? Because he has perceived attitude problems? Unless Chiarelli gets a No. 1 defenceman for him in a deal, they are a worse team without him.

1. Connor McDavid (1st overall, 2015) – Was there even any question about this one? McDavid was dominant in his 45 games with the Oilers last season, registering the third-highest points per game average in the league (1.07) and only missed out on winning the Calder Trophy because of his broken clavicle. That’s alright, I have a feeling his NHL trophy case will be full 20 years from now he hangs up his skates. McDavid is the face of the franchise and will likely be named the youngest captain in NHL history this fall.

I hope you enjoyed my list. Let me know if you agree or disagree with my choices. It’s always good to talk to fellow Oilers fans. Thanks for reading!

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